Antonio Marquina: Editor´s Note/Nota Editorial
Selected Bibliography/Bibliografía Seleccionada
INTERPRETING INDIA´S RISE AND ITS GLOBAL IMPLICATIONS
Introduction
Shantanu Chakrabarti
Abstract This issue of the UNISCI Journal focuses on key aspects of India's external relations that are becoming increasingly important for its global image in the twenty-first century. Some of these aspects have yet to receive the attention from scholars and policymakers that they deserve. Despite its thematic limitations, this special issue on India sheds light on critical aspects of its foreign and security policies that highlight the country's rise and its global implications.
Keywords India’s rise, India´s Foreign Policy, Greater India, Hindu civilization, soft security, diaspora, complex interdependence, Global South, India and the EU, India and the US, India and China, India and Israel, India and West Asia, India and South Asia.
Abstract This issue of the UNISCI Journal focuses on key aspects of India's external relations that are becoming increasingly important for its global image in the twenty-first century. Some of these aspects have yet to receive the attention from scholars and policymakers that they deserve. Despite its thematic limitations, this special issue on India sheds light on critical aspects of its foreign and security policies that highlight the country's rise and its global implications.
Keywords India’s rise, India´s Foreign Policy, Greater India, Hindu civilization, soft security, diaspora, complex interdependence, Global South, India and the EU, India and the US, India and China, India and Israel, India and West Asia, India and South Asia.
India’s Foreign Policy and the Quest for Global Leadership: Reflections on Ambition and Accomplishments
Shibashis Chatterjee and Sreya Maitra
Abstract This article describes the transition from India’s idealist foreign policy under Nehru (the Nehruvian era) to its present-day pragmatism. We contend that this shift stems from India’s global leadership claim, caught between lofty normative goals and material constraints. India’s foreign policy reflects an interplay between global systemic pressures and domestic preferences, shaped by postcolonial anxieties and a distinct civilizational identity. New Delhi’s diplomacy has moved from moral non-alignment to post–Cold War strategic multi-alignment, economic liberalization, and nuclear assertion. The article examines India’s participation in multilateral forums of global governance (UN, WTO, BRICS, G20), where it promotes a fair and egalitarian global order through developmental diplomacy. It also highlights the distinctiveness of the Modi government’s strategy, which deploys civilizational soft power and symbolism to integrate cultural heritage with strategic considerations. Several Structural constraints continue to limit India’s influence. India’s rise reflects a complex interaction of power, principles, history, and modernity.
Keywords Indian foreign policy, global leadership, strategic autonomy, multi-alignment, civilizational identity, multilateralism, postcolonial constraints
Abstract This article describes the transition from India’s idealist foreign policy under Nehru (the Nehruvian era) to its present-day pragmatism. We contend that this shift stems from India’s global leadership claim, caught between lofty normative goals and material constraints. India’s foreign policy reflects an interplay between global systemic pressures and domestic preferences, shaped by postcolonial anxieties and a distinct civilizational identity. New Delhi’s diplomacy has moved from moral non-alignment to post–Cold War strategic multi-alignment, economic liberalization, and nuclear assertion. The article examines India’s participation in multilateral forums of global governance (UN, WTO, BRICS, G20), where it promotes a fair and egalitarian global order through developmental diplomacy. It also highlights the distinctiveness of the Modi government’s strategy, which deploys civilizational soft power and symbolism to integrate cultural heritage with strategic considerations. Several Structural constraints continue to limit India’s influence. India’s rise reflects a complex interaction of power, principles, history, and modernity.
Keywords Indian foreign policy, global leadership, strategic autonomy, multi-alignment, civilizational identity, multilateralism, postcolonial constraints
A Return to “Greater India”
Jolita Zabarskaitė
Abstract This article examines India’s diplomacy and self-conception through the revival of the idea of “Greater India”, which flourished in the early twentieth century and died out shortly after India’s independence. Once developed for nation-building, “Greater India”, was based on the idea of ancient India’s civilizational influence in Asia, especially Southeast Asia. After independence, however, this concept was largely abandoned, as it conflicted with India’s post-war aspiration to act as an equal partner in Asia and in Asian and African self-organisation: “Greater India” was incompatible with a partnership of equals and was largely absent at the 1947 Asian Relations Conference in Delhi and the 1955 Bandung Conference. This is now beginning to change. The idea of “Greater India” serves as a historical framework to assert India’s cultural and geopolitical influence. As it has reappeared in the last decade, it has taken older forms, but without the subtleties of those forms.
KeywordsIndian expansionism, civilizational state, cultural nationalism, foreign policy, heritage diplomacy.
Abstract This article examines India’s diplomacy and self-conception through the revival of the idea of “Greater India”, which flourished in the early twentieth century and died out shortly after India’s independence. Once developed for nation-building, “Greater India”, was based on the idea of ancient India’s civilizational influence in Asia, especially Southeast Asia. After independence, however, this concept was largely abandoned, as it conflicted with India’s post-war aspiration to act as an equal partner in Asia and in Asian and African self-organisation: “Greater India” was incompatible with a partnership of equals and was largely absent at the 1947 Asian Relations Conference in Delhi and the 1955 Bandung Conference. This is now beginning to change. The idea of “Greater India” serves as a historical framework to assert India’s cultural and geopolitical influence. As it has reappeared in the last decade, it has taken older forms, but without the subtleties of those forms.
KeywordsIndian expansionism, civilizational state, cultural nationalism, foreign policy, heritage diplomacy.
India’s security approach and its space in global politics.
Vidushi Kaushik and John Doyle
Abstract As India positions itself as a rising regional decolonial power by promoting its socio-cultural norms and carving out a new place for itself in the changing landscape of global politics, its internal landscape and security policy continue to exhibit processes and practices that hark back to colonial times. This article highlights these internal contradictions by examining India’s approach to addressing armed violence in the context of the Maoist conflict, as well as the racialising logic applied to its Adivasi population. It also links this approach to the homogenising and Hindu civilisation approach that has gained primacy in India’s foreign policy since the BJP came into power fifteen years ago. It concludes with the suggestion that, if India is to establish itself as a leading voice in the shift towards decoloniality in international politics, it must address its internal contradictions in matters of internal security. The securitisation of these issues has severely undermined the political agency of India’s marginalised population, thus undermining India’s claim to decoloniality.
Keywords: India, decolonial, conflict, Maoist, internal security, Adivasi, Hindutva, racialisation, foreign policy.
Abstract As India positions itself as a rising regional decolonial power by promoting its socio-cultural norms and carving out a new place for itself in the changing landscape of global politics, its internal landscape and security policy continue to exhibit processes and practices that hark back to colonial times. This article highlights these internal contradictions by examining India’s approach to addressing armed violence in the context of the Maoist conflict, as well as the racialising logic applied to its Adivasi population. It also links this approach to the homogenising and Hindu civilisation approach that has gained primacy in India’s foreign policy since the BJP came into power fifteen years ago. It concludes with the suggestion that, if India is to establish itself as a leading voice in the shift towards decoloniality in international politics, it must address its internal contradictions in matters of internal security. The securitisation of these issues has severely undermined the political agency of India’s marginalised population, thus undermining India’s claim to decoloniality.
Keywords: India, decolonial, conflict, Maoist, internal security, Adivasi, Hindutva, racialisation, foreign policy.
Rising India’s Soft Power: Illusion or Influence?
Ajaya Kumar Das
Abstract This article traces how India’s soft power has been analysed over the years since its conceptualisation in the 1990s. It argues that most of the focus has been on its potential non-military elements of soft power thereby perpetuating illusion about India’s soft power rather than its real power or influence. It further agues on the basis of a case study that the higher level of hard power results in higher level of soft power. Rather than emulating the US or China in promoting cultural and public diplomacy that give soft power indirectly, India needs to focus on growing more economically and spending more on military because they are foundational for soft power. Soft power like power in general is however contextual.
Keywords: India, rising, soft power, hard power, nuclear, democracy
Abstract This article traces how India’s soft power has been analysed over the years since its conceptualisation in the 1990s. It argues that most of the focus has been on its potential non-military elements of soft power thereby perpetuating illusion about India’s soft power rather than its real power or influence. It further agues on the basis of a case study that the higher level of hard power results in higher level of soft power. Rather than emulating the US or China in promoting cultural and public diplomacy that give soft power indirectly, India needs to focus on growing more economically and spending more on military because they are foundational for soft power. Soft power like power in general is however contextual.
Keywords: India, rising, soft power, hard power, nuclear, democracy
Soft Power and the Rise of India: Global Implications of Narendra Modi’s Foreign Policy
Sohom Bhattacharyya
Abstract Narendra Modi reoriented the foreign policy of India by foregrounding cultural diplomacy, civilisational heritage, and diaspora outreach as some of the major strategic tools for global influence. Advocating upon Joseph Nye's concept of soft power, this article will try to examine how elements like yoga, vaccine diplomacy, and cultural symbolism have magnified the global visibility of our country, India. The cultivation of soft power in Indian foreign policy, as adopted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also reflects a significant shift in strategic autonomy and multilateral participation. The article concludes that, to understand India's rise in present-day international relations, we must recognise the significant focus on Modi's sustained emphasis on soft power as a foundational pillar of Indian foreign diplomacy.
Keywords Diplomacy, Joseph Nye, India, Narendra Modi, soft power, yoga.
Abstract Narendra Modi reoriented the foreign policy of India by foregrounding cultural diplomacy, civilisational heritage, and diaspora outreach as some of the major strategic tools for global influence. Advocating upon Joseph Nye's concept of soft power, this article will try to examine how elements like yoga, vaccine diplomacy, and cultural symbolism have magnified the global visibility of our country, India. The cultivation of soft power in Indian foreign policy, as adopted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, also reflects a significant shift in strategic autonomy and multilateral participation. The article concludes that, to understand India's rise in present-day international relations, we must recognise the significant focus on Modi's sustained emphasis on soft power as a foundational pillar of Indian foreign diplomacy.
Keywords Diplomacy, Joseph Nye, India, Narendra Modi, soft power, yoga.
(Re)invention of Diasporic Tradition and the Foreign Policy Making in the Nation State: The...
Raj Sekhar Basu, Sayantika Biswas
Abstract:. Indians abroad, the largest and most heterogeneous among the global communities, have become central to debates on identity, migration and transnationalism. Globalisation has reinforced ties with the homeland while embedding these communities in host societies, thus producing dual identities that challenge conventional notions of nationhood. Further complicating the analytical precision of “diaspora”, the Indian case exemplifies the plurality of society and the heterogeneity of migration causes and phases. This exemplification makes it difficult to subsume the contexts of diaspora under a single paradigm. Despite various divergences, a shared sense of Indianness persists across the communities abroad, sustained through cultural memory, identity and origin. This enduring collective consciousness makes the strategic significance of the Indian diaspora in shaping global discourses on belonging and transnational identity.
Keywords:Indian diaspora, globalisation, transnationalism, identity, migration, cultural memory, indianness, heterogeneity.
Abstract:. Indians abroad, the largest and most heterogeneous among the global communities, have become central to debates on identity, migration and transnationalism. Globalisation has reinforced ties with the homeland while embedding these communities in host societies, thus producing dual identities that challenge conventional notions of nationhood. Further complicating the analytical precision of “diaspora”, the Indian case exemplifies the plurality of society and the heterogeneity of migration causes and phases. This exemplification makes it difficult to subsume the contexts of diaspora under a single paradigm. Despite various divergences, a shared sense of Indianness persists across the communities abroad, sustained through cultural memory, identity and origin. This enduring collective consciousness makes the strategic significance of the Indian diaspora in shaping global discourses on belonging and transnational identity.
Keywords:Indian diaspora, globalisation, transnationalism, identity, migration, cultural memory, indianness, heterogeneity.
India and the Rare Earth Conundrum: Navigating Security, Geoeconomics, and Global Supply Chains
Ratnadeep Maitra, Tapas Das
Abstract: The post-pandemic multipolar world order has led to a 'decoupling' of supply chains, prioritising reliable collaboration and attempting to delimit and isolate China geopolitically. However, Sino-American rivalry has been particularly pronounced in the strategic semiconductor industry, where rising regional powers such as India assume tremendous importance given the recent Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) roadmap. This article examines the intersection of geoeconomics and security in the semiconductor industry, drawing on Buzan's concept of 'multi-dimensional security' and Keohane and Nye's idea of 'complex interdependence'. Finally, it considers how India might influence the emerging network of supply chains and the consequent implications for technological security.
Keywords: Rare earths, semiconductors, supply chain, critical technologies, geoeconomics, security, India, China-US rivalry.
Abstract: The post-pandemic multipolar world order has led to a 'decoupling' of supply chains, prioritising reliable collaboration and attempting to delimit and isolate China geopolitically. However, Sino-American rivalry has been particularly pronounced in the strategic semiconductor industry, where rising regional powers such as India assume tremendous importance given the recent Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) roadmap. This article examines the intersection of geoeconomics and security in the semiconductor industry, drawing on Buzan's concept of 'multi-dimensional security' and Keohane and Nye's idea of 'complex interdependence'. Finally, it considers how India might influence the emerging network of supply chains and the consequent implications for technological security.
Keywords: Rare earths, semiconductors, supply chain, critical technologies, geoeconomics, security, India, China-US rivalry.
India and the Superpowers: From Bilateral Anchors to Networked Strategic Autonomy for «Viksit Bharat»
Swaran Singh
Abstract This article examines the contemporary dynamic of India’s engagements with the Russia, the United States, and China. The article argues that, as part of rising India’s major-power engagements, its interactions with these three “superpowers” have evolved from conventional compartmentalised bilateralism into an increasingly interconnected strategic ecosystem shaped by defence-industrial linkages, geo-economic networks, and the diplomatic logic of rivalrous multipolarity. India’s policy towards these “superpowers” now operates through overlapping patterns of cooperation, competition, and managed interdependence crafted as multi-alignment. The article demonstrates how India’s strategic hedging and networked strategic autonomy — expressed through diversified defence, energy and economic partnerships, embedded into multilateralism — undergird its evolving and asymmetric equilibria in its functional engagements with Russia, the United States and China. It concludes that given validity of global structural drifts, India’s continued rise towards Viksit Bharat (developed India) depends on its ability to institutionalise such interconnected gains without eroding its strategic autonomy at the core.
Keywords: India, India´s rise, superpowers, Russia, United, States, China, interconnection, strategic hedging, networked security, autonomy.
Abstract This article examines the contemporary dynamic of India’s engagements with the Russia, the United States, and China. The article argues that, as part of rising India’s major-power engagements, its interactions with these three “superpowers” have evolved from conventional compartmentalised bilateralism into an increasingly interconnected strategic ecosystem shaped by defence-industrial linkages, geo-economic networks, and the diplomatic logic of rivalrous multipolarity. India’s policy towards these “superpowers” now operates through overlapping patterns of cooperation, competition, and managed interdependence crafted as multi-alignment. The article demonstrates how India’s strategic hedging and networked strategic autonomy — expressed through diversified defence, energy and economic partnerships, embedded into multilateralism — undergird its evolving and asymmetric equilibria in its functional engagements with Russia, the United States and China. It concludes that given validity of global structural drifts, India’s continued rise towards Viksit Bharat (developed India) depends on its ability to institutionalise such interconnected gains without eroding its strategic autonomy at the core.
Keywords: India, India´s rise, superpowers, Russia, United, States, China, interconnection, strategic hedging, networked security, autonomy.
India in the European Union’s foreign and security policy. Strategic opportunities, structural constraints and...
Agnieszka Kuszewska-Bohnert
Abstract: India has only recently begun to be regarded as an EU strategic partner in the Indo-Pacific region with regard to maritime security. This article examines the challenges of EU–India security interactions, referring to three interconnected dimensions that collectively explain their drivers and limitations. Strategically, India offers the EU extra-regional reach and support in managing China-related risks, as well as growing defence cooperation. However, structural constraints remain. Brussels and New Delhi have different security priorities, disagree on Russia, and lack a coherent treaty framework. Although their relationship is presented as that of 'like-minded democracies', it actually serves as an instrument of mutual leverage rather than providing coordinated support for democratic values and human rights. Nevertheless, recent developments reveal more substantive outcomes in terms of maritime cooperation and security dialogue.
Keywords: EU’s foreign and security policy, evolving global order, EU-India relations, India in EU’s security policy.
Abstract: India has only recently begun to be regarded as an EU strategic partner in the Indo-Pacific region with regard to maritime security. This article examines the challenges of EU–India security interactions, referring to three interconnected dimensions that collectively explain their drivers and limitations. Strategically, India offers the EU extra-regional reach and support in managing China-related risks, as well as growing defence cooperation. However, structural constraints remain. Brussels and New Delhi have different security priorities, disagree on Russia, and lack a coherent treaty framework. Although their relationship is presented as that of 'like-minded democracies', it actually serves as an instrument of mutual leverage rather than providing coordinated support for democratic values and human rights. Nevertheless, recent developments reveal more substantive outcomes in terms of maritime cooperation and security dialogue.
Keywords: EU’s foreign and security policy, evolving global order, EU-India relations, India in EU’s security policy.
Shifting Balances and Recalibrating Partnership: Assessing India-US Relations in the Indo-Pacific Region.
Urbi Das
Abstract: The relationship between India and the US is a unique case in the study of international relations, as the two nation-states share many similarities, yet there are also differences that have shaped the formative years of their relationship. Over the years, relations have evolved from 'estrangement' to multifaceted strategic engagement. This article examines the evolving nature of India–US relations, with a particular focus on the Indo-Pacific region. While the United States considers itself an Indo-Pacific power, India favours positive engagement with regional stakeholders. This article investigates the significance of the Indo-Pacific region for the security calculations of India and the US, considering the implications in light of China's rise and assertiveness in the region. It elaborates on their policies and assesses the ramifications of their partnerships on the region's security dynamics.
Keywords: India, US, Indo-Pacific, China, security.
Abstract: The relationship between India and the US is a unique case in the study of international relations, as the two nation-states share many similarities, yet there are also differences that have shaped the formative years of their relationship. Over the years, relations have evolved from 'estrangement' to multifaceted strategic engagement. This article examines the evolving nature of India–US relations, with a particular focus on the Indo-Pacific region. While the United States considers itself an Indo-Pacific power, India favours positive engagement with regional stakeholders. This article investigates the significance of the Indo-Pacific region for the security calculations of India and the US, considering the implications in light of China's rise and assertiveness in the region. It elaborates on their policies and assesses the ramifications of their partnerships on the region's security dynamics.
Keywords: India, US, Indo-Pacific, China, security.
Clash of the titans & India’s Asia-Pacific predicament
Subhadeep Bhattacharya
Abstract: The strategic notion of the Indo-Pacific revolves primarily around the perception of China’s assertive rise and the potential decline of the US-led liberal international order, triggering strategic competition and rivalry between rising and dominant powers. Unlike the term 'Asia-Pacific', which emerged in the 1960s and emphasised the partnership between the economic giants of the time, the term 'Indo-Pacific' has more strategic and political connotations. India is considered an important component of this strategy. The USA wishes to involve India in its grand ‘Indo-Pacific’ strategic design, especially to counter the Chinese challenge in the East Asia/Pacific region. To this end, it has promoted India’s growing association with its East Asian and Pacific allies. However, the nature of the strategy suggests that it is more Pacific than 'Indo', and India has limited scope to contribute significantly, given its preoccupation with handling the geostrategic challenges emanating from its belligerent neighbours in South Asia.
Keywords: Indo-Pacific, Asia-Pacific, India, USA, China, geopolitics.
Abstract: The strategic notion of the Indo-Pacific revolves primarily around the perception of China’s assertive rise and the potential decline of the US-led liberal international order, triggering strategic competition and rivalry between rising and dominant powers. Unlike the term 'Asia-Pacific', which emerged in the 1960s and emphasised the partnership between the economic giants of the time, the term 'Indo-Pacific' has more strategic and political connotations. India is considered an important component of this strategy. The USA wishes to involve India in its grand ‘Indo-Pacific’ strategic design, especially to counter the Chinese challenge in the East Asia/Pacific region. To this end, it has promoted India’s growing association with its East Asian and Pacific allies. However, the nature of the strategy suggests that it is more Pacific than 'Indo', and India has limited scope to contribute significantly, given its preoccupation with handling the geostrategic challenges emanating from its belligerent neighbours in South Asia.
Keywords: Indo-Pacific, Asia-Pacific, India, USA, China, geopolitics.
Beyond Conventional Diplomacy: Cultural Nationalism, Technology as Statecraft, and Geoeconomic Convergence in India–Israel Relations
Priya Singh
Abstract: The discourse on India–Israel relations has remained constrained by a security centred paradigm in which defence cooperation and diplomatic pragmatism are treated as the partnership’s principal markers. Recent scholarship, however, indicates that this framing no longer captures the wider ideational, technological and geoeconomic forces shaping the relationship in the twenty first century. A more textured account emerges when cultural nationalism, technology as statecraft and geoeconomic convergence are approached as interconnected domains that recast how each state understands and pursues strategic alignment. These domains reveal a form of strategic behaviour shaped by the demands of technological competition, economic fragmentation and shifting regional orders. By tracing how ideas, infrastructures and economic strategies intersect within this bilateral relationship, the analysis contributes to wider debates on strategic culture and the transformation of statecraft in the contemporary global landscape.
Keywords: India–Israel relations, cultural nationalism, technology as statecraft, geoeconomic convergence, strategic culture, atypical democracies
Abstract: The discourse on India–Israel relations has remained constrained by a security centred paradigm in which defence cooperation and diplomatic pragmatism are treated as the partnership’s principal markers. Recent scholarship, however, indicates that this framing no longer captures the wider ideational, technological and geoeconomic forces shaping the relationship in the twenty first century. A more textured account emerges when cultural nationalism, technology as statecraft and geoeconomic convergence are approached as interconnected domains that recast how each state understands and pursues strategic alignment. These domains reveal a form of strategic behaviour shaped by the demands of technological competition, economic fragmentation and shifting regional orders. By tracing how ideas, infrastructures and economic strategies intersect within this bilateral relationship, the analysis contributes to wider debates on strategic culture and the transformation of statecraft in the contemporary global landscape.
Keywords: India–Israel relations, cultural nationalism, technology as statecraft, geoeconomic convergence, strategic culture, atypical democracies
Energy, Expatriates, Security. The Hazy Contours of India’s Policy towards the Middle East
Kingshuk Chatterjee
Abstract: India has yet to develop a coherent policy towards the Middle East as a whole. Much of India’s foreign policy towards countries in the region continues to be bilateral, as before. For a country aspiring to be a major regional power, New Delhi appears extremely cautious about deepening contact with Middle Eastern countries beyond a narrow range of clearly defined 'interests' on an almost exclusively transactional basis. This article aims to identify the three main factors influencing India's foreign policy towards Middle Eastern countries: energy security, the welfare of Indian expatriates in the region, and the diversification of national security and defence interests. It then argues that New Delhi remains wary of engagement where India’s own interests are not at stake and that transactionalism limits the scope of Indian engagement in the region.
Keywords: India, Middle East, regional policy, energy security, trade in crude, refining crude, refinery technology, expatriate community, remittances, commodities, defence technology, transactionalism, bilateralism, national interests.
Abstract: India has yet to develop a coherent policy towards the Middle East as a whole. Much of India’s foreign policy towards countries in the region continues to be bilateral, as before. For a country aspiring to be a major regional power, New Delhi appears extremely cautious about deepening contact with Middle Eastern countries beyond a narrow range of clearly defined 'interests' on an almost exclusively transactional basis. This article aims to identify the three main factors influencing India's foreign policy towards Middle Eastern countries: energy security, the welfare of Indian expatriates in the region, and the diversification of national security and defence interests. It then argues that New Delhi remains wary of engagement where India’s own interests are not at stake and that transactionalism limits the scope of Indian engagement in the region.
Keywords: India, Middle East, regional policy, energy security, trade in crude, refining crude, refinery technology, expatriate community, remittances, commodities, defence technology, transactionalism, bilateralism, national interests.
India and the Non-Western Space: Mapping India’s Potential and Possibilities in South Asia and...
Tanwir Arshed
Abstract:With the dismantling of the Berlin Wall there was a subsequent vocalisation of the end of history thesis, which marked a turning-point in the study of world politics. However, with a gradual transition from a unipolar to an increasingly oligo-polar order, such transformation reconfigured the conventional west-centric conceptions of diplomacy and power balancing within politics amongst nations. Eventually, this generated an alternative discourse in world politics that not only challenges the Eurocentric epistemic within IR, but profoundly foregrounds ways for a normatively oriented, non-western frameworks. In South Asia, India, by virtue of its geostrategic location and enduring civilizational heritage, emerges as a vibrant actor that well aligns within this evolving framework. To substantiate this claim, the paper uses a case-study approach across three distinct non-western spaces, and make an attempt to evaluate three non-security lexicons (cultural & civilizational capital, postcolonial sub-regional engagements, and value-based humanitarian diplomacy) to demonstrate how India is positioned to substantiate its claim for the broader non-Western space.
Keywords: Oligopolar world order, global south, history, culture, custom, political heritage.
Abstract:With the dismantling of the Berlin Wall there was a subsequent vocalisation of the end of history thesis, which marked a turning-point in the study of world politics. However, with a gradual transition from a unipolar to an increasingly oligo-polar order, such transformation reconfigured the conventional west-centric conceptions of diplomacy and power balancing within politics amongst nations. Eventually, this generated an alternative discourse in world politics that not only challenges the Eurocentric epistemic within IR, but profoundly foregrounds ways for a normatively oriented, non-western frameworks. In South Asia, India, by virtue of its geostrategic location and enduring civilizational heritage, emerges as a vibrant actor that well aligns within this evolving framework. To substantiate this claim, the paper uses a case-study approach across three distinct non-western spaces, and make an attempt to evaluate three non-security lexicons (cultural & civilizational capital, postcolonial sub-regional engagements, and value-based humanitarian diplomacy) to demonstrate how India is positioned to substantiate its claim for the broader non-Western space.
Keywords: Oligopolar world order, global south, history, culture, custom, political heritage.
Soft Power in Hard Times: India’s Cautious Re-engagement with Taliban ruled Afghanistan
Anwesha Ghosh
Abstract: This article analyses India’s soft power strategy in Afghanistan across three phases: its consolidation (2001–2021), abrupt disruption following the Taliban’s return, and cautious recalibration thereafter. It contends that, despite the inherent limits of soft power in coercive environments, humanitarian and development assistance has functioned as the primary vehicle for New Delhi’s pragmatic re-engagement with the Taliban regime after 2021. Drawing on two decades of Indian aid diplomacy and post-2021 policy shifts, the study examines how India has balanced principled commitment to inclusive governance with strategic imperatives of maintaining relevance and countering rival influence. The analysis illuminates the tension between values and realpolitik in India’s evolving Afghanistan policy and evaluates the opportunities and constraints of its current “humanitarian-plus” approach within a broader quest for regional stability and strategic autonomy.
Keywords: India -Afghanistan relations, Taliban, soft power, humanitarian diplomacy, aid as statecraft, principles versus pragmatism, strategic recalibration.
Abstract: This article analyses India’s soft power strategy in Afghanistan across three phases: its consolidation (2001–2021), abrupt disruption following the Taliban’s return, and cautious recalibration thereafter. It contends that, despite the inherent limits of soft power in coercive environments, humanitarian and development assistance has functioned as the primary vehicle for New Delhi’s pragmatic re-engagement with the Taliban regime after 2021. Drawing on two decades of Indian aid diplomacy and post-2021 policy shifts, the study examines how India has balanced principled commitment to inclusive governance with strategic imperatives of maintaining relevance and countering rival influence. The analysis illuminates the tension between values and realpolitik in India’s evolving Afghanistan policy and evaluates the opportunities and constraints of its current “humanitarian-plus” approach within a broader quest for regional stability and strategic autonomy.
Keywords: India -Afghanistan relations, Taliban, soft power, humanitarian diplomacy, aid as statecraft, principles versus pragmatism, strategic recalibration.
From Ally to Ambiguity: India-Bangladesh Relations at a Crossroads
Tapas Das, Tanwir Arshed
Abstract: Marked by political interregna, social mobilization, and civil rights movements; contemporary South Asian geopolitics have significantly challenged the conventional understandings of sub-regional politics. This article examines the changing contours of India–Bangladesh relations following the ouster of the Hasina regime in 2024. Employing three interlinked levels of analysis (a) India’s coercive economic policies, border practices, and increasingly ambiguous connectivity commitments; (b) Bangladesh’s domestic political reordering; and (c) Dhaka’s strategic realignment toward Pakistan and China. The article argues that the aftermath of July revolution might not only reshape India–Bangladesh relations in days to come but will also contribute to a structural recalibration of sub-regional power dynamics, unless India seeks to recalibrate its westward neighbourhood strategy.
Keywords: India-Bangladesh Relations, Regime Compatibility, Security Dilemma, Dhaka's Foreign Policy Pivot, Non-political Exchanges.
Abstract: Marked by political interregna, social mobilization, and civil rights movements; contemporary South Asian geopolitics have significantly challenged the conventional understandings of sub-regional politics. This article examines the changing contours of India–Bangladesh relations following the ouster of the Hasina regime in 2024. Employing three interlinked levels of analysis (a) India’s coercive economic policies, border practices, and increasingly ambiguous connectivity commitments; (b) Bangladesh’s domestic political reordering; and (c) Dhaka’s strategic realignment toward Pakistan and China. The article argues that the aftermath of July revolution might not only reshape India–Bangladesh relations in days to come but will also contribute to a structural recalibration of sub-regional power dynamics, unless India seeks to recalibrate its westward neighbourhood strategy.
Keywords: India-Bangladesh Relations, Regime Compatibility, Security Dilemma, Dhaka's Foreign Policy Pivot, Non-political Exchanges.
TERRORISM
Global Threat Assessment 2026
Liu Chunlin, Rohan Gunaratna
Abstract: The Global Threat Assessment 2026 examines the evolving global security environment shaped by superpower rivalry, geopolitical fragmentation, and the persistence of terrorism and extremism. While attacks in Western states will remain limited, the vast majority of terrorist violence will occur in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, driven primarily by Islamic State and Al Qaeda affiliates and state-sponsored militant proxies. The assessment highlights the growing convergence of state and non-state actors, the rise of hybrid and irregular warfare, and the expanding role of digital platforms in radicalisation, recruitment, and operations. It concludes that terrorism will remain the preeminent national security threat in 2026, requiring preventive counterterrorism strategies, stronger regulation of physical and digital spaces, and sustained international cooperation across ideological divides.
Keywords: Global terrorism, extremism; hybrid warfare, State-sponsored militancy, irregular warfare; counterterrorism, radicalization, digital extremism, geopolitical rivalry, global security.
Abstract: The Global Threat Assessment 2026 examines the evolving global security environment shaped by superpower rivalry, geopolitical fragmentation, and the persistence of terrorism and extremism. While attacks in Western states will remain limited, the vast majority of terrorist violence will occur in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, driven primarily by Islamic State and Al Qaeda affiliates and state-sponsored militant proxies. The assessment highlights the growing convergence of state and non-state actors, the rise of hybrid and irregular warfare, and the expanding role of digital platforms in radicalisation, recruitment, and operations. It concludes that terrorism will remain the preeminent national security threat in 2026, requiring preventive counterterrorism strategies, stronger regulation of physical and digital spaces, and sustained international cooperation across ideological divides.
Keywords: Global terrorism, extremism; hybrid warfare, State-sponsored militancy, irregular warfare; counterterrorism, radicalization, digital extremism, geopolitical rivalry, global security.